Economist and Professor at the University of Ghana Business School, Gofred Bokpin, has described the government's decision to maintain its fiscal consolidation strategy through the end of 2026 as reassuring, saying it provides stability and predictability for businesses and investors.

Speaking on Joy FM's Top Story on Thursday, July 23, following Finance Minister Dr Cassiel Ato Forson's presentation of the 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review in Parliament on Thursday, Prof. Bokpin said the government had resisted making major revisions to its macroeconomic targets, a move he believes will help preserve confidence in the economy.

"I think it's a good presentation," he said. "The reassuring thing is that government is keeping to the fiscal consolidation strategy to the end of 2026. There are no major revisions in terms of the macroeconomic targets."

According to him, the Finance Minister's reaffirmation of a primary fiscal surplus target of 1.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) demonstrates the government's commitment to restoring macroeconomic stability before shifting its focus to growth-enhancing expenditure.

Prof. Bokpin noted that Ghana had already achieved its debt sustainability target nearly two years ahead of the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) original 2028 timeline following the country's staff-level agreement with the Fund.

He explained that while the IMF programme required Ghana to maintain a primary surplus of about 0.5% of GDP to preserve debt sustainability, the government appears to be taking a more cautious approach by maintaining tighter fiscal discipline through 2026.

"Perhaps government is looking at recalibrating the fiscal strategy from 2027. They would rather see out the measures they have put in place in the 2026 Budget so they use two years to fully restore macroeconomic stability before moving to growth-enhancing spending from 2027 and beyond," he said.

He added that the government's decision not to introduce major policy changes during the Mid-Year Budget Review was consistent with the purpose of such reviews.

"As usual, mid-year reviews are not occasions for major policy introductions or revisions unless the assumptions underlying the main budget forecasts shift significantly," he explained.

Prof. Bokpin said the review mainly serves to provide a comprehensive update on the economy using full-year audited data, unlike the main budget, which often relies partly on projections because complete fiscal data may not yet be available.

He noted that this explains why figures in the Mid-Year Budget Review sometimes differ from those contained in the original budget statement.

"Usually, the mid-year review gives us more clarity about the performance of the economy in the previous year because by then full-year data would have been made available and audited," he said.

Despite his positive assessment, Prof. Bokpin cautioned that inflation remains an area requiring close attention.

He observed that inflation has risen for three consecutive months, suggesting the government may need to review its expenditure patterns to avoid undermining recent macroeconomic gains.